I had a very similarly pleasant experience! I mailed my renewal application by express mail from NYC on Nov. 2, and it arrived in Irving, Texas on Nov. 3. I chose regular service, not expedited. I just got my new passport in the mail today, Nov. 26. Just over 3 weeks from receipt to arrival in my hands! The issuance date on the passport was Nov. 15.

I'm quite happy!

Flying internationally in 3 weeks - should I wait for 14-day mark to get appt?
 

My US passport is expired, and I'm planning to fly internationally in 3 weeks (departing Dec 19-23, but ticket not yet booked). So it looks like I'm in between two processes - perhaps too late for expedited mail-in passport renewal (sounds like 3-5 weeks), and too early for in-person appointment at regional passport center (can only be within 14 days of travel and must have flight booked).

I'd rather not deal with traveling to my regional passport center (in NYC), but is that my only realistic option at this point? Would you risk doing the expedited mail-in process? I guess once I start that process, they'll have my passport and I wouldn't be able to switch to the in-person appointment if it looks like mail-in process won't complete in time?

What would you do in my situation?

I would go to the NYC passport center in person. While it's possible you could mail your passport in for expedited renewal and get it back in time, it's also possible that you won't - and, as you noted, if that's the case, you won't have your passport in the meantime.

Assuming you absolutely have to travel abroad on Dec. 19, that seems to me to be by far the least-worst option.

Purchase a refundable ticket for travel in one week. Get an in-person appt. Get new passport. Cancel reservation. Book your intended flight.

Or, as a variation on that theme, can I purchase refundable ticket, get in-person appt. Then change flight before appt to another flight that falls within 14 days of appt? If that's possible, that would allow booking the intended flight earlier.

Or do they require you to show up at appt with same flight itinerary as what you called with?

I'm starting to wish I would have stuck with the old fasion mail in approach to my renewal. I submitted renewal online on 10/28 and it's still in a Received status, hasn't moved at all. I tried calling and they were no help, just said they can only see the same information I can. Not really sure where to turn to next.

Yes, your variation would work, too - you can always change your travel plans. Or, you can book a near in trip and a farther out trip at the same time (assuming your financing can handle it!).

It is not required to be the same flight details. Also, the passport office employees sort of understand that plans can change in between setting up the appointment and showing up for the appointment and needing the passport.

10/20: Application submitted online via MyTravelGov (https://caprovservice.state.gov/c1/w...er-portal/home) for passport renewal and a passport card
10/21: Application "is now being reviewed by a U.S. Department of State employee"
11/30: "We shipped your passport" e-mail received
12/02: USPS Informed Delivery indicating that a package from "PASSPORT SERVICES/DOS TUCSON" was to arrive that day - except of a mail hold due to travel
12/03: USPS Informed Delivery showing mail from "U.S. Government Official Mail - OPR" in Portsmouth NH has sent something arriving that day - but was also caught in the mail hold
12/05: Passport (new-gen) and passport card received in mailbox

FWIW, attempts to check on MyTravelGov between 10/21 and 11/xx were rewarded with "In Process" on the website and nothing else - no way to see if anything going on nor any e-mail when requesting application status on travel.state.gov.

David

Did you have the extra pages option when applying online?

TBH, I don't recall being offered the option for extra pages.

David

I renewed in around Nov 27 once the online renewal was re-opened on Nov 20. The extra page option was offered as I was specifically looking for the option.

I frankly knew nothing at all about the online option until reading about it here. Seems like it's got lots of problems and (based on your experience) takes longer than submitting by mail? I'm glad I didn't know about it before I renewed.

The online submittal process clearly hadn't been discussed in this thread and is missing some elements that the by mail submittal process has had time to debug. Had hoped that, since everything was online, things would go lickety split. But, as this submittal went, no.

Primary benefit for me at least was not having to pull all of the material together and go over to an application submittal facility - just make sure that I had the relevant data and photo and off it was submitted online. If they had a way to query the application status after submittal similar to the mail process, that would have been better.

David

The post office route works for me - got a form from the post office, got a picture from Duane Reade, wrote a check, and tossed everything into an express mail envelope. I'm feeling very lucky that everything went so smoothly.